Raytheon’s AGM-176 Griffin Mini-Missiles

January 18/16: Raytheon has been given an $85 million contract to supply Griffin A & B Block II/III missiles to the USAF. Delivery of the missiles is expected to be January 31, 2017. The missiles are the two variants of the AGM-176 Griffin mini-missile. The Griffin A is an unpowered precision munition that can be dropped from a rear cargo door, or a door-mounted launcher of an aircraft, while the rocket-powered Griffin B can be employed as an air-to-surface or surface-to-surface missile. Both are currently being used on a variety of weapons platforms including LCS vessels, C-130 aircraft and UAVs.

Keep reading for the whole story with recent events put in context

Naval launch
(click to view full)

As UAVs proliferate, and the demands of counter-insurgency fights force militaries to look at arming new kinds of aircraft, a number of manufacturers and governments are looking to develop precision-guided “mini-missiles” and glide weapons. Raytheon’s 33+ pound, 42 inch long Griffin is a member of that class, and comes in 3 versions.

Griffin was privately developed, and Raytheon took pains to re-use components from existing weapons like the AIM-9X Sidewinder air-air missile and the Javelin anti-tank missile. The resulting weapon carved out a niche in the growing market for small and relatively inexpensive guided weapons, but Raytheon thinks it has more potential, and has been investing in new capabilities…

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The AGM-176 Griffin Family

KC-130J, Afghanistan

AGM-176A. Griffin-A is currently in use as part of American roll-on armed kits for its C-130 Hercules transports. It’s dropped out of “gunslinger” tubes and “derringer doors,” providing precision weapon drops from the rear ramp and side door. It packs a 13 pound blast-fragmentation warhead, and uses a combination of GPS/INS and a semi-active laser seeker for guidance.

AGM-176B/ MK-60. Griffin-B is a powered missile can be a forward-firing weapon, and can be launched from land, naval, or aerial platforms. The missile’s estimated range is similar to the larger AGM-114 Hellfire: about 3.5 miles if surface-launched without a booster motor, rising to 12.5 miles or more if fired from an aerial platform at altitude. That’s fine for aerial platforms, as Griffin A/B offers them the ability to carry more Griffins than Hellfires, while achieving similar reach and precision. The tradeoff is a smaller warhead.

There are still targets like tanks that will demand a larger AGM-114 Hellfire warhead, and targets like buildings may demand a full-size AGM-65 Maverick missile or LJDAM bomb. In many cases, however, the Griffin offers a “just enough, for less” solution that has the added benefit of minimizing collateral damage.

The AGM-176B Block III adds an improved semi-active laser seeker, enhanced electronics and signal processing, and a new Multi-Effects Warhead System that works against a number of different target types.

AGM-176C. The Griffin C attempts to compete against Lockheed’s Hellfire and MBDA’s Brimstone 2 by adding dual-mode laser/IIR guidance for a fire-and-forget missile that uses thrust-vectoring control for vertical launch compatibility, a datalink for retargeting in flight, and waypoint flight to maneuver around obstacles.

The AGM-176C-ER keeps these improvements, and its rocket motor extends surface-launched range to 10 miles or more – about 3x the range of previous Griffins, or their larger Hellfire/ Brimstone competitors.

Looking Beyond

Griffin on HMMWV(click to view full)

The Army has tested the 45-pound, powered Griffin-B missile as an option for forward outposts. Its de facto competition here is Raytheon’s own Javelin missile, which is already widely deployed, and offers similar range and firepower. Javelin is a rather expensive missile, and takes some time to activate and reload, but comes with advanced sensors that troops use independently.

In order to find a viable niche and achieve acceptance, Griffin will have to compete on cost and response time/volume. Griffin C’s added range will help, but this missile family’s ability to receive geo-coordinate cues from UAVs and other sensors, without the need for an operator to find the same target himself, may be their biggest edge.

On the naval front, the picture isn’t as rosy. Griffin-B reportedly costs about half as much as the Raytheon NLOS-LS PAM, but its surface-launched range is less than 1/6th of NLOS-LS PAM’s 21 nautical miles. This severe cut in reach, coupled with the warhead’s small size, sharply limits its versatility. Griffins could engage enemy speedboats, but guidance modes for the A & B models force one-at-a-time engagements. Nor can Griffin do much damage to full-size enemy vessels – most of which will pack large anti-ship missiles with a 50 – 200 mile reach.

This didn’t stop the Navy from designating the Griffin as an interim solution, and it has been a very useful addition to their Cyclone Class patrol boats. On the other hand, Griffin’s limitations, and the availability of fire-and-forget Hellfire missile stocks, led the US Navy to equip their Littoral Combat Ship with AGM-114L Hellfire Longbow radar-guided missiles instead.

Griffin C’s combination of range and guidance modes may give it a chance on other vessels that are thinking of mounting Brimstone-class weapons, but it’s never going to compete with anti-ship missiles. Nor does it have the range to deliver naval fire support for ground forces, outside of a CONOPS involving small speedboat/ USV swarms. That leaves close-in fire as Griffin’s sweet spot, with a potential boost from its ability to also equip tactical-size shipboard UAVs.

Contracts & Key Events

KC-130J’s “gunslinger”(click to view full)

Unless otherwise noted, the USAF’s Air Armament Center Contracting, Advanced Programs Division at Eglin Air Force Base, FL manages these contracts, though U.S. Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, AL also seems to have its share. The contractor is Raytheon Missiles Systems Co. in Tucson, AZ.

FY 2016

AT-6C & Griffins(click to view full)

January 18/16: Raytheon has been given an $85 million contract to supply Griffin A & B Block II/III missiles to the USAF. Delivery of the missiles is expected to be January 31, 2017. The missiles are the two variants of the AGM-176 Griffin mini-missile. The Griffin A is an unpowered precision munition that can be dropped from a rear cargo door, or a door-mounted launcher of an aircraft, while the rocket-powered Griffin B can be employed as an air-to-surface or surface-to-surface missile. Both are currently being used on a variety of weapons platforms including LCS vessels, C-130 aircraft and UAVs.

FY 2012 – 2015

May 29/15: Orders.The Air Force signed a contract with Raytheon to procure Griffin missiles, with the deal worth $12 million. The Griffin is a precision miniature munition that utilizes parts from other Raytheon-manufactured missiles – such as the Javelin ATGM and the AIM-9X AAM – to keep costs down. The missile is currently used as part of roll-on armed kits for US C-130 transport aircraft.

Nov 3/14: Orders. A maximum $85.5 million indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for Griffin AGM-176A Block II and AGM-176B Block III (q.v. Feb 20/14) missiles and test/ support equipment, along with engineering support under a cost-plus-fixed-fee CLIN. $32.6 million is committed immediately as an initial order, using FY 2013 – 2015 USAF budgets.

DID asked Raytheon’s Griffin Programs Director Steve Dickman about this order. He told us that this isn’t a major shift for Griffin, just a way for the government to continue buying missiles as it needs them. Based on past figures, the initial order is very solid.

Work will be performed at Tucson, AZ, and the government will be able to continue buying missiles and services under its terms until Oct 30/17. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. The USAF Life Cycle Management Center at Eglin AFB, FL manages the contract (FA8656-15-D-0241).

July 17/14: LCS closed. Navy Recognition interviews a US Navy representative re: the Surface to Surface Mission Module aboard LCS, which will sit above the helicopter hangar on the Freedom Class, and behind the 57mm gun on the Independence Class. Key excerpts:

“Longbow Hellfire is the selected missile to help meet the LCS Surface Warfare Mission Package’s (SUW MP) engagement requirement per the LCS Capabilities Description Document (Flight 0+). Currently, no new requirement exists to warrant acquisition of a new engagement capability…. An LCS variant can only receive one SUW mission package. This will have one Surface-to-surface Missile Module (SSMM), which will utilize one launcher structure that holds 24 Longbow Hellfire missiles…. There currently is no requirement for at-sea reloads.Therefore, the current SSMM design does not support at-sea reloads… It utilizes an existing Army M299 launcher mounted within a gas containment system.”

Looks like Raytheon’s SeaGriffin has lost its shot, despite tripling its previously-comparable range and adding comparable fire-and-forget capability in its latest iteration. Sources: Navy Recognition, “Q & A with the US Navy on Lockheed Martin Hellfire missiles for Littoral Combat Ships”.

July 14/14: SeaGriffin. Raytheon hasn’t given up on its “SeaGriffin missile” for the Littoral Combat ship just yet. A recent test was used to demonstrate a dual-mode laser and imaging infrared guidance system, whose fire-and-forget capability would allow the same kind of salvo launches against swarming targets that the AGM-114L Hellfire’s MMW radar seeker offers. They also tout “an extended range motor that will nearly triple [SeaGriffin’s] range,” giving it a notable advantage over Lockheed Martin’s AGM-114L Hellfire or MBDA’s Dual-Mode Brimstone 2.

Other SeaGriffin enhancements beyond the Griffin-B Block II include a datalink for in-flight target updates, waypoint navigation, and vertical launch capability with vectoring thrust control. The firm says that they’re conducting a series of SeaGriffin guided flight tests to demonstrate the missile’s readiness as an option for the LCS Surface Warfare module. Sources: Raytheon, “Raytheon SeaGriffin completes guided flight test with new dual-mode seeker”.

SeaGriffin (Griffon C/ C-ER) introduced

LCS: Hellfire(click to view full)

April 9/14: LCS. The US Navy confirms that they have picked the AGM-114L Hellfire Longbow radar-guided missile as the LCS Surface Warfare Package’s initial missile. Its fire and forget guidance, salvo capability, and ability to use the ship’s radar tipped the balance against Griffin. Lockheed Martin says that the missile has had 3 successful test firings in vertical launch mode, and there are plans to test-fire the missile from LCS itself in 2014, using a new vertical launcher.

Hellfire wouldn’t have any more range than Griffin’s 3.5 nmi, but the millimeter-wave radar seeker allows the ship’s radar to perform targeting, while allowing salvos of multiple fire-and-forget missiles against incoming swarms. In contrast, the Griffin’s laser designation must target one boat at a time, from a position that’s almost certain to have a more restricted field of view than the main radar. Navy AGM-114L missiles would be drawn from existing US Army stocks, which will have shelf life expiry issues anyway. That’s one reason the Army intends to begin buying JAGM laser/radar guided Hellfire derivatives around FY 2017.

March 25/14: MK-60 IOC. The MK-60 Patrol Coastal Griffin Missile System has formally achieved initial operational capability with the US Navy on its Cyclone Class vessels. they’ve actually been carrying Griffin for a while; testing began in March 2012.

The MK-60 system includes the AGM-176B Griffin missile, a laser targeting system, a US Navy-designed launcher, and a battle management system on a laptop for use by the missile’s operator. Sources: Navy Recognition, “DIMDEX 2014 Show Daily: US Navy achieves IOC on Patrol Coastal Griffin Missile System” | Shephard, “US Navy declares IOC for MK-60 Griffin missile system”.

Naval IOC

Feb 20/14: Griffin Block III. After a range of testing including a number of live test shots against fixed and moving targets, Raytheon says that the new Griffin Block III is on the production line as the missile’s new iteration.

Block III introduces an improved semi-active laser seeker, enhanced electronics and signal processing, and a new Multi-Effects Warhead System that works against a number of different target types. We’re starting to see a lot of general convergence between blast, fragmentation, and armor-piercing effects, and the trend seems to be headed toward sharp reductions in the number of weapon variants determined by warhead type. Sources: Raytheon, “Raytheon demonstrates Griffin Block III missile”.

Feb 5/14: #2,000. Raytheon announces delivery of its 2,000th Griffin Missile since production began in 2008, an AGM-176B Block III variant. The production milestone also highlights 70 consecutive months of on-time or early Griffin deliveries to the warfighter. Sources: Raytheon, “Raytheon marks delivery of 2000th Griffin missile”.

Delivery #2,000

July 22/13: GAO Report. The US GAO releases GAO-13-530, “Significant Investments in the Littoral Combat Ship Continue Amid Substantial Unknowns about Capabilities, Use, and Cost”. The entire report is a long chronicle of the Littoral Combat Ship program’s history of falling short and unresolved issues, including a number of issues with the mission modules. While Griffin missiles have been deployed on Cyclone Class patrol boats, GAO says they may never be deployed aboard LCS:

“The Navy assessed over 50 potential missile replacements for LCS, and in January 2011 selected the Griffin IIB missile as an interim solution based, in part, on it costing half of [NLOS-LS per missile]. The program now intends to purchase one unit with a total of eight Griffin IIB missiles, to be fielded in 2015, which leave other SUW module equipped ships with a limited ability to counter surface threats. However, Navy officials told us that they may reconsider this plan because of funding cuts related to sequestration. According to OPNAV, funding for Griffin development and testing has been suspended for the remainder of fiscal year 2013. OPNAV and the LCS program office, with LCS Council oversight, plan to investigate using a more cost-effective, government-owned, surface-to-surface missile system that would provide increased capability, including increased range. According to Navy program officials, the deployment of the Increment IV [Griffin successor] missile could also be delayed by over a year [i.e. to 2020] because funding reductions have delayed early engineering work and proposal development for the missile contract.”

June 12/12: Testing.Raytheon reveals a winter 2012 test in which 3 Griffin missiles were fired from a sea-based launcher at 3 separate speeding-boat targets more than 2 km / 1.2 miles away. The weapons were guided by laser, and scored direct hits on the targets.

The test demonstrates that the Griffin can defend a warship against speedboats that venture inside mutual torpedo range. On the one hand, that’s a good thing. Those with a grasp of naval history might recall British Royal Navy Captain Augustus Willington Shelton Agar, VC, DSO. As a Lieutenant, he sank the Russian heavy cruiser Oleg and a submarine depot ship, and badly damaged 2 battleships in 1919, using torpedo-armed speedboats launched from the Terijoki Yacht Club in Finland. The bad news is that Agar’s successors use larger Fast Attack Craft, armed with anti-ship missiles that vastly outrange the Griffin. The AGM-176B can still be very useful on patrol boats and smaller craft, but it’s a secondary defense at best for warships.

May 29/12: Orders. An $8.2 million firm-fixed-price contract modification buys “Griffin stand-off precision guided munitions” and engineering services support. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, with an estimated completion date of Dec 31/12. One bid was solicited, with one bid received. The U.S. Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, AL manages this contract. (W31P4Q-10-C-0239).

This order pushes announced contracts to date over $166 million.

Order

May 18/12: Orders. An $85.5 million firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to buy Griffin missiles. Based on past records (q.v. Nov 2/11), the total contract would correspond to a maximum of over 800 missiles.

It isn’t all committed at once, and the initial order buys just 22 Griffin all-up-rounds, and 43 telemetry rounds for testing. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, and will run until July 31/13 (FA8677-12-D-0037).

Major order

April 18/12: RAM shot. Raytheon announces that sometime in winter 2011, the USN fired a Griffin B missile from a land-based Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) launcher. The shot was taken at a static target about 2 miles away, and the GPS/laser guidance produced a direct hit.

OK, successful demonstration. On the other hand, the RAM system already has the ability to hit surface craft from longer range than Griffin, albeit with less surety than Griffin’s laser guidance. Since RIM-116 missiles can also kill incoming anti-ship missiles, it isn’t clear why a ship would mount Griffins by sacrificing several RIM-116 slots on a 21-slot MK-49 or 11-shot SeaRAM launcher. Sources: Raytheon, “US Navy Fires Raytheon Griffin Missile From RAM Launcher”.

Feb 14/12: Army testing Griffin.Raytheon announces that the US Army is testing its powered Griffin B as a potential system to provide 360 degree quick-reaction firepower to smaller outposts. Raytheon’s Javelin missile can already do this within the Griffin’s firing range, so the Griffin will have to compete on cost, responsiveness, and fire volume:

“During the test, warfigthers fired a Griffin missile from a launcher at a static target more than 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) away. Using GPS coordinates generated by a tethered aerostat, the missile directly impacted the target, achieving all test objectives.”

“Less than a year after first introducing it to the fleet, the Marine Corps has already used the Harvest Hawk… to fire 74 Hellfire and 13 Griffin missiles… while also providing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, a Marine aviation official said here recently.”

Nov 2/11: Orders. A $9.3 million firm-fixed-price contract modification to buy 70 Griffin Block IIA all up rounds, and 21 Griffin Block II A telemetry rounds that replace the warhead with testing electronics. The primary location of performance is Tucson, AZ, and the purchase supports U.S. Special Operations Command (FA8677-11-C-0115, PO 0008).

Order

Aug 19/11: UAVs.Aviation Week reports on 2 key milestones for the MQ-8 Fire Scout helicopter UAV program. One is the addition of the larger MQ-8C/ Fire-X. The other is weapons approval for the MQ-8B, beginning with the APKWS-II laser-guided 70mm rocket that’s already cleared for use from Navy ships.

Raytheon’s laser-guided short-range Griffin mini-missile is slated for a demonstration before the end of August 2011, and will be the platform’s next weapon, as opposed to Northrop Grumman’s own GBU-44 Viper Strike.

Aug 15/11: Orders. An $11.5 million firm-fixed-price cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for an unspecified number of Griffin missiles, and associated engineering services support. Work location will be determined by task order, with an estimated completion date of Sept 30/12. One bid was solicited, with one bid received by the U.S. Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-10-C-0239).

Order

July 14/11: Orders. A $9.1 million contract modification to buy 4 Griffin Block II A telemetry rounds for testing (part number 2292000-25), and 74 Griffin Block IIA all up rounds (Part Number 2292000-26) to include shipping, engineering services, and proposal development costs.

Griffin is currently used on UAVs and armed C-130s, as well as a potential future aboard the LCS (FA9200-11-C-0180, PZ0003).

“The Navy may not have settled on the Griffin missile to replace the canceled Non-Line-Of-Sight missile on the Littoral Combat Ship, despite the service’s announcement in January that it planned to use the missile for both a short-term and long-term solution to the capability gap, officials told Inside the Navy last week…”

Jan 11/11: LCS. Media report that the U.S. Navy is moving towards selecting Raytheon’s Griffin missile as the replacement for the cancelled NLOS-LS, instead of taking over that program’s development now that the Army has pulled out. USN surface warfare division director Rear Adm. Frank Pandolfe told a Surface Navy Association convention audience in Arlington, VA that a 6-month review had settled on this Raytheon product, as something that can hit targets at “acceptable” ranges and cost.

That recommendation must be endorsed by the Navy before anything comes of this; if they do, the service would field the existing very short range Griffin by 2015, and try to develop a longer range version later. DoD Buzz | Arizona Daily Star.

Sept 8/10: UAVs.Flight International reports that the Griffin is being integrated onto MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper UAVs. They are not specific, but these are probably US Special Operations Command’s modified MALET drones.

Griffin-B launch(click to view full)

June 9/09: Orders. A $14.5 million firm-fixed-price with cost-plus-fixed-fee line items contract for Griffin A & B munitions and engineering services. Even the air-launched versions have ranges of just 9+ miles, however, and at this point, Griffin is not on the radar screen for use on LCS.

Work is to be performed in Tucson, AZ, with an estimated completion date of May 31/10. One bid was solicited, with one bid received by the US Army Aviation and Missile Contracting Center at Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-09-C-0517).

Order

Dec 24/08: Orders. A firm-fixed-price with cost-plus-fixed-fee line items contract for Griffin munitions and engineering services – but the amount is not mentioned. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, with an estimated completion date of Aug 31/09. One bid was solicited and one bid received by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Contracting Center at Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-08-C-0252).

Order

Aug 13/08: Orders. A $6.1 million firm-fixed price with cost-plus fixed fee line items contract for Griffin munitions and engineering services. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, and is expected to be complete by Aug 31/09. One bid was solicited on Feb 5/08 by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-08-C-0252).

At this point, NLOS-LS is still a program in good standing, and Griffin is seen as a UAV and helicopter weapon. The prospect of equipping an MQ-1A/B Predator with 6 Griffins instead of 2 Hellfires is seen as especially attractive. See also Aviation Week, “Small Raytheon Missile Deployed On Predator” [dead link].

Order

May 23/08: Order. A $10.25 million firm-fixed price contract for Griffin munitions. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, and is expected to be complete by March 31/09. One bid was solicited on Feb 5/08 by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-08-C-0252).

Order

May 7/08: Order. A $9.4 million firm-fixed price contract with cost-plus-fixed fee items for Griffin munitions, and associated engineering services. Work will be performed in Tucson, AZ, and is expected to be completed by Dec 31/08. One bid was solicited on Feb 5/08 by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command in Redstone Arsenal, AL (W31P4Q-08-C-0252).